DUBAI: A PARADISE

by Kumkum Ramchandani

For twenty years my family and I lived in an Islamic paradise called Dubai. This tiny emirate, ruled by the benevolent sheikhs, the Maktoums, is a perfect example of how Islam and modern development can co-exist to form a harmonious blend of peaceful existence and progressiveness.

Dubai, one of seven emirates that form the United Arab Emirates, has hardly any oil. Its reputation has been built on its remarkable efficiency as a trading hub mainly in the re-export market. This legacy of shrewd trading has been passed down by the late visionary of the family, Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed al Maktoum, who ruled over Dubai when it was just a small dot on the Arabian Ocean.

From a small player in the 1970s Dubai has become a sophisticated player in international trade. Its unique nature is dictated by the fact that its indigenous population of “local” Arabs is very small as compared to the vast hordes of migrant workers who are “imported” to make up the working population. Thus out of a population of about 900,000, about 75% are foreigners.

On the whole, though foreign workers have no “rights”, the equation is clear. The “locals” tolerate the well-heeled expatriates and hardworking foreign manual labourers while the expatriates consider Dubai a temporary haven where they earn tax-free incomes and lead enviably luxurious lives particularly in the case of the upper income managerial class.

Being a benevolent monarchy has its plus points. Law and order is so stringent that there is very little crime. Though Islam is the predominant religion practised, the rulers are tolerant of other religions as long as they are not overtly visible. For example, there is a Hindu temple and the major Hindu festivals are celebrated vigorously within the confines of homes and Asian socio-cultural organisations. Churches are present everywhere as Christianity is looked upon favourably by Muslims.

As a journalist working as staff reporter for the country’s only government newspaper in English, I was privileged to participate in the UAE’s astonishing march towards modernization. I was present at the opening ceremony of the world’s flashiest seven star hotel, the Burj al Arab, where suites can go for as high as $8000 a night. I was there for the formulation of the Internet City and Media City, booming townships where open enterprise and innovation were to go hand in hand with amazingly advanced equipment and technology.

I often interacted with the movers and shakers of the country, some of them young and excitedly ambitious, others middle-aged, yet able to participate easily in the technological leaps that ensure continuous prosperity. Some times the lust for advancement was almost vulgar. Only the “biggest and the best” would do. During one of the emirate’s successful festivals, the “world’s longest cake” was set up to enter the Guinness Book of World Records. The waste and ingredients alone would have been able to feed the population of a small starving country.

Unlike the western-held stereotype of the lazy gun-toting Arab, the nationals of Dubai are as sophisticated as they come. Most of the younger lot have been educated in US universities and are busy applying their knowledge to their own situation resulting in a very successful amalgamation of eastern and western knowhow.

The Dubai government, though not democratically elected, is run like a private enterprise. There is an enviable degree of dedication on the part of its constituents. The blueprint is quite simple – the economic and social development of the emirate and the nation takes precedence over everything else.

On paper it seems to be a highly theoretical formula but it is actually decidedly practical and the smooth operation of the emirate is a demonstration of its effectiveness. For once somebody, an emirate in this case, can say “we put our money where our mouth is” and get away with it!